Dissemination of knowledge for public decision-making (IT0083)

Problem addressed:

The complex integration of measures that the legal system places to protect public integrity (anti-mafia, anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, anti-fraud, etc.) arises from the general difficulty in understanding the phenomena that threaten the effectiveness of political and administrative action and that distort the public system’s objectives. These phenomena, such as organised crime infiltration, money laundering, fraud, and embezzlement, certainly raise social alarm. However, the dynamics and mechanisms of exploitation involving the public sector are difficult to understand and often escape perception. Other phenomena, such as conflicts of interest and revolving doors, remain in the background of political and administrative action and are addressed using ineffective approaches in terms of ensuring the independence and impartiality of public functions. The complexity of these phenomena makes it increasingly necessary to build and strengthen, both in public administrations and among citizens, knowledge and skills helpful in addressing them. This can be done by creating a dialogue between the administrative oversight constituted by the internal control system and the external control ensured by civic monitoring activities. It is important to build a common language for both preventing and countering corrupt phenomena, money laundering, and fraud, also from the perspective of increasingly integrating the safeguards provided by the legal system with the solutions developed by civil society organisations. Another fundamental issue, in this perspective, is the protection of whistleblowers. Despite the recent adoption of Directive 2019/1937, many critical issues remain open, particularly regarding the visibility of CSOs that provide support and assistance to whistleblowers and the usability of this service. Therefore, mapping and reviewing all entities dealing with whistleblower protection in Italy is necessary, as well as further promotion and dissemination of good practices already developed by the SNA's RPCT Community of Practice addressing this issue.

Description of the commitment:

The main goal is to create, through equal collaboration between institutions and civil society organisations, a body of skills and guidelines to prevent corruption, fraud, and money laundering, promoting a culture of integrity among public personnel and civil society organisations. This requires training within the SNA's RPCT Community of Practice. This will be achieved by identifying archetypes to develop innovative skills for public employee training, enabling them to understand phenomena and properly manage conflicts of interest and ethical dilemmas, as also requested by the OECD Recommendations on Public Integrity. Furthermore, it is crucial to help change the narrative around the whistleblower figure, strengthening their protection to defend public value. Initiatives will be undertaken to increase understanding of the new regulations, promote training and skills development paths for RPCTs, and plan targeted communication strategies. The same applies to the transparency of assets seized from the mafia, which must be returned to the communities to recover the value taken away. In the current context, integrating anti-corruption and anti-money laundering is essential to prevent the risks of criminal infiltration, especially in PNRR-funded projects.

How willl the commitment address the problem?

The development of skills within civil society and administrations is of primary importance to support integrity policies and the management of assets confiscated from the mafia for social purposes. Skills development helps actors navigate a complex landscape and initiate the necessary dialogue to build and preserve public value, which is the ultimate goal of administrative action. Regarding the integration of anti-corruption and anti-money laundering measures, in light of the need for increasing coordination, a qualitative survey will continue to systematise information and data related to factors enabling public administrations to fulfil anti-money laundering duties, aiming to create an active collaboration model that can be proposed through the Community of Practice to a broader number of public entities, transforming those enabling factors into genuine good practices to be exported and disseminated. In the same vein, a model of integrity competencies will be defined through qualitative and quantitative surveys on the perception and tolerance of corrupt behaviors, as well as understanding the phenomena thatthreaten the transparency and integrity of decision-making processes. In an era where the narrative built on unverifiable data shapes and constructs the civic space, it is necessary to rethink public information’s value in this context, both for public decisions and citizen involvement in political life. The commitment includes activities coordinated with Commitment 4 of Goal B.

Why is this commitment relevant to the OGP values?

The commitment is relevant because it aims to enhance the role and experience of organised civil society, alongside public administrations, in preventing corrupt phenomena to promote integrity and accountability. It also seeks to spread targeted skills among public personnel. Given the current significant lack of sensitivity and awareness on crucial anti-corruption prevention topics, it is necessary to promote innovative training models for public employees (also through concrete cases and ethical dilemmas, as requested by the OECD Recommendations on Public Integrity), enabling a full understanding of the phenomena and correct risk management. Similarly, it is relevant to OGP values to accompany the narrative change about whistleblowers, networking all entities involved in their protection in Italy, and enhancing transparency in reporting channels to create a favorable environment.

Description of the activities and outputs:

Integration between anti-corruption and anti-money laundering measures and strengthening anti-money laundering measures in administrations
Outputs: Update on the survey of enabling factors for anti-money laundering duties, in continuity with 5NAP (May 2025), Guidelines for integrating anti-money laundering measures within the goals of promoting public administration integrity (January 2026)
Strengthening transparency and accountability for civic monitoring and skills of public administration staff in managing confiscated assets
Outputs: Best practices on: Data publication standardization (January 2026), Management and allocation regulation of confiscated assets (May 2026)

Dissemination of best practices in whistleblowing
Outputs: Best practices review (September 2025)

Awareness on conflict of interest, development, and transfer of a “policy for emergence and management” model
Outputs: Prototype of "conflict of interest management policy" (March 2025)

A qualitative-quantitative survey aimed at a first definition of the "public integrity skills profile"
Output: Scientific and divulgative research report to raise awareness on the themes of integrity and transparency of decision-making processes and phenomena that can lead to a decline in integrity, with particular attention to conflict of interest (May 2026)

Definition of a first framework of skills for integrity and participation to anticipate exposure to the culture of integrity in school age, based on relevant experiences at the national and international level
Output: Summary document: "skills for integrity in school" (April 2026)